Delran gets jump-start on federal STEM recommendation

Lisa Ryan lryannews

Tuesday

Jan 29, 2019 at 12:58 PM

The government now recommends that public schools find community parties to collaborate with on STEM education. Delran is ahead of the curve, as the district joined the Delran STEM Ecosystem Alliance in 2016.

The federal government this month recommended that public schools enhance STEM education, in part, by allying with community partners to share resources and prepare students for the workforce.

These networks, called STEM ecosystems, focus on hands-on learning that emphasizes real-world and career applications of technical concepts. Public schools partner through the ecosystems with local businesses, higher-education institutions and community groups to provide grant opportunities, training, and other STEM resources to kindergarten through 12th-grade teachers.

For Delran School District STEM co-coordinator Erica DeMichele, the recommendation wasn’t a surprise. Since her district joined the Delran STEM Ecosystem Alliance in 2016, science, technology, engineering and mathematics education has become more well-rounded as a result of partnerships with such organizations as Public Service Electric & Gas, the district teachers’ association and Rowan College at Burlington County.

“When you start talking to people about this work, they’re a little perplexed,” DeMichele said. “But when you see (students) working, you’re like, ‘We have to do this.’ The ecosystem, the work we’re doing, exposes them to more, to activities that weren’t there before.”

In 2016, Delran joined one of four STEM alliances created in 2014 by the state’s STEM Pathways Network to improve STEM education outcomes and workforce development. Since 2017, it has been managed by the Research and Development Council of New Jersey, according to council executive director Kim Case.

Delran is the only Burlington County school district in a STEM ecosystem.

The council wants to see improvements in students’ math and science performance and in teacher preparation over time, and to offer quality STEM education to students of any background, Case said.

“We were excited this (ecosystem recommendation) came out in the report,” Case said. “This really validates the work we were doing, in addition to the successes we’ve seen.”

The National Science and Technology Council’s Committee on STEM Education in early December released a five-year strategic plan to offer inclusive, lifelong, high-quality STEM education nationwide to increase proficiency and access for all Americans. Research shows that compared with citizens in other countries, Americans have less-developed STEM skills and are not as prepared for higher education in STEM, the report shows.

While high-paying STEM-based jobs are in demand, there is a labor shortage, according to the report.

The study noted that comprehensive STEM education is vital since it offers digital, critical-thinking and problem-solving skills necessary across all fields.

The committee is increasing its funding for STEM and, in its guidelines for stakeholders looking to help the effort, encouraged communities nationwide to build STEM ecosystems. The United States currently has 68 ecosystems, according to stemecosystems.org.

New Jersey’s four ecosystems have benefited 90,000 learners since 2017, according to Case. More than 3,000 of those students were in Delran's ecosystem, while the others came from the North Jersey-based Liberty STEM ecosystem, the Newark STEAM Coalition, and the Camden-based South Jersey STEM and Innovation Partnership.

In Delran, the ecosystem supports and enhances district curriculum, making lessons more hands-on, collaborative, and applicable to real life and workforce scenarios. Partnerships with employers, like Willingboro electronics firm Radwell International, are helping Delran students think beyond common perceptions when it comes to STEM careers, according to DeMichelle.

DeMichele said partners like Lockheed Martin, PSE&G and the Overdeck Family Foundation have also donated toward the district’s digital fabrication laboratory.

The Fab Lab, now under construction, will feature STEM equipment like 3-D printers, laser cutters, woodworking equipment and other tools, which students will use to make models and build collaborative and digital skills. The district hopes that once the Fab Lab is established, students can take classes for dual credit at the high school and at ecosystem partner RCBC.

STEM is more accessible within the ecosystem as well, according to DeMichele. Grants from partner organizations have helped the district provide tuition assistance to low-income students who want to enroll in Delran’s summer STEM program, buy STEM books for varied reading levels to accommodate different abilities, and more.

“If we’re spouting ‘STEM for all,’ it’s the only way to get STEM for all,” DeMichele said.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.

Follow Us

Advertise

Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted.
Burlington County Times ~ 116 Burrs Rd., Suite B, Westampton, NJ 08060 ~ Privacy Policy ~ Terms Of Service